An arbitrator has ruled that over 100 casinos can proceed with a class-action lawsuit against gaming device manufacturer Light & Wonder regarding alleged monopolistic practices in the card-shuffling machine market.

American Arbitration Association (AAA) arbitrator John Wilkinson determined that class arbitration is the most efficient and fair method to resolve the antitrust claims, despite Light & Wonder's arguments that individual claims were too different to certify as a class.

The case originated in 2020 when the Tonkawa Indians of Oklahoma filed a lawsuit claiming Scientific Games Corp. (now Light & Wonder) was overcharging for card-shuffling devices and maintaining a monopoly that forced casino operators to purchase their products.

Wilkinson's decision emphasized that managing 112 separate arbitrations would be impractical and violate AAA's principles of cost-effective proceedings. He noted that courts typically presume numerosity for classes larger than 40 members.

Light & Wonder is simultaneously facing a similar federal lawsuit in Chicago, where over 1,000 casinos have filed antitrust claims. The company entered the card-shuffling device market through its $5.1 billion acquisition of Bally Technology in 2014, which had previously acquired SHFL Entertainment, the original Shuffle Master machine maker.

SHFL Entertainment had a history of aggressive patent defense and was previously ordered to pay $315 million to competitor Shuffle Tech after allegedly forcing them out of business, following their integration into Scientific Games.

The certification of this class action marks a significant development in the ongoing dispute over card-shuffling machine market practices in the gaming industry, potentially setting precedent for similar cases in the future.

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